Milena Smit Turns Safety Pins Into a Statement Piece

What’s more unassuming than a safety pin? In Milena Smit’s hands, quite a lot. At the Amarga Navidad photo call in Madrid, the actor transformed the everyday object into a one-of-a-kind look.

Slipping into a delicate, diaphanous slip dress punctuated with dangling safety pins, the actor tapped into a DIY spirit that feels almost attainable. It appeared like something you could piece together at home with a handful of hardware and a sharp eye. But Smit’s version was anything but makeshift. The look came courtesy of London’s ever-inventive Dilara Findikoglu.

The design was based on a form-fitting knit dress that featured next-to-no design elements aside from its safety pin–laden trim. The silver baubles were attached to the neck and hemline of the dress, forming a sort-of corset structure up top and an unexpected fringe down below. The safety pins were clasped conventionally and looped inside one another for a sense of movement.

Leaning into the fantasy fully, Smit paired her dress with a matching choker. The collier used bunched-together pins and a white base with frayed edging. Smit tied in the metallic elements of her dress by wearing silver sandals. She completed the outfit with shimmering eyeshadow and wet-look hair.

Safety pins, long a symbol of DIY counterculture style, has a storied track record with high fashion. Findikoglu has made the item a reoccurring force in her work—look no further than the seashell bustier Cate Blanchett wore in 2025. Safety pins are also hallmarks of brands like Balmain and Moschino, and even Versace who uses the tool to pin together its famous second-skin dresses. And who could forget Miley Cyrus’s daring Maison Margiela by John Galliano safety pin dress at the 2024 Grammys?

Next time you can’t figure out what to wear, it might be worth starting with what’s already in your office drawer.